The number of people who fear artificial intelligence is on the rise. A new poll of 1,004 registered voters in the U.S. found that 57 percent of them believe AI is a'threat to the human race.' The findings demonstrate the increasing skepticism around AI, which has made its way into many of the devices we use today, from cars to cellphones. The number of people who fear AI is on the rise. A new poll of 1,004 registered voters in the U.S. found that 57 percent of them believe AI is a'threat to the human race' The survey was conducted from April 17th to 18th by political analyst and pollster Scott Rasmussen and market research firm HarrisX.

Sleep helps you to get over embarrassing moments, scientific research has found. Getting a good night's rest helps your brain resolve emotions - helping you to deal with cringe-worthy episodes in life, researchers believe. But scientists found that insomniacs remain haunted by embarrassing moments. It is thought that their brains have not had a chance to deal with the episode. Researchers at the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience based their research on 27 people with insomnia and 30 normal sleepers.

Construction work on a moonbase could begin within the next decade as China reveals its timeline for future missions to the lunar surface. Zhang Kejian, the administrator of the China National Space Administration (CNSA), announced the plans in a recent speech. The research facility will be located near the moon's ice-rich south pole and will be shared with multiple countries, Mr Zhang said. Ice will be needed on the moon to provide water for both human consumption and as a component for rocket fuel. The small step of a lunar base could serve not only as a platform for research but also as a refuelling station for giant leaps out into the solar system.

Apprenticeship has a long history in art -- and now a painting AI will join the ranks of those who have honed their skills by imitating the masterpieces of other artists. Much like the pupils of the old masters, the new AI meticulously studies the work of virtuoso painters like Vermeer and Van Gogh and learns to reproduce their works. The arty algorithm uses deep learning techniques to master the way that each artist lays their brushstrokes on the canvas, mimicking stroke colour, density and size. Once adept at a given approach, the AI can then make new works of art in the learnt style based on photographs given to it. The algorithm, dubbed'PaintBot', is the creation of a team of researchers from the University of Maryland, the ByteDance AI Lab and Adobe Research.

I needed some explosive chemicals from the old sawmill on the edge of town, but hundreds of freakers were gathered there, feasting on a mass grave. So I set explosive traps around the building's edges, planned a course through its twists and turns, then tossed a napalm-filled molotov cocktail into the building. They were on me in an instant -- hundreds of hungry monsters ready to rip me limb from limb. I ran for it, hoping not to blow myself up with my own bombs or become the freakers' next meal. After an hour of fighting, dying, and trying again, I was finally victorious. I was out of ammo, explosives and medical supplies, but the horde was dead.

Management actions promoted economic prosperity (positive material contributions) and agricultural abandonment (negative material contributions). The park provides nonmaterial and regulating contributions (e.g., opportunities for nature experiences, habitat creation and maintenance).

AI has learned how to convincingly paint in the style of masters like Van Gogh and Vermeer. Dinesh Manocha at the University of Maryland and colleagues trained an AI to replicate the styles of well-known paintings including the pointillist The Eiffel Tower by Georges Seurat, The Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh, oil paintings by Johannes Vermeer, and Chinese ink landscapes by Ming dynasty painter Shen Zhou.

Walmart isn't going to let Amazon's AI-powered stores go unanswered, although it's not exactly cloning the concept. The big-box chain has unveiled a publicly accessible concept store, the Intelligent Retail Lab (IRL for short), in Levittown, New York. The location uses computer vision and a vast array of cameras not to handle purchases, like Amazon Go does, but to help employees restock empty shelves and corral shopping carts. There are still checkout lines and floor staff, Walmart notes -- this is meant to minimize drudgery for workers and free them for tasks "humans can do best," like helping customers. The retailer is aware of the potential worries about privacy, and is determined to be as open about what's going on as possible.

The European Commission's Joint Research Center is working on a tool that could use tweets and artificial intelligence to collect real-time data on floods. In a paper released on Arvix.org, EU scientists explain how their Social Media for Flood Risk (SMFR) prototype could help emergency responders better understand what's happening on the ground in flooded areas and determine what trouble spots might need immediate attention. The tool works in collaboration with Europe's Flood Awareness System (EFAS). When EFAS identifies areas with heightened flood risks, it triggers SMFR to begin collecting flood-related tweets from users in those areas.

A little over a year ago, we reported on the status of the Robonaut 2 on the International Space Station. Things had not gone all that well for R2 ever since an attempt had been made to install a pair of legs back in 2014, leading to an intermittent power problem that was very hard to diagnose. NASA brought Robonaut back to Earth last year for repairs, and a few weeks ago, we stopped by NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC) in Houston, Texas, to visit the Robonaut lab and get an update on what's been happening with R2. The Robonaut lab is in Building 9 at JSC, attached to the space vehicle mockup facility. JSC's Valkyrie lives in this massive high bay, and was busy practicing a bomb disposal task (!) when we peeked in.